Morning Mound Visit: Dick Allen passes away at 78

Matt Snyder | CBS Sports: Dick Allen, one of the best players not to receive induction into the Hall of Fame, passed away on Monday at 78. Allen is likely to be enshrined by the Golden Age Hall of Fame committee when they convene next winter, but Allen shouldn’t have had this honor come posthumously. He should already be in.

Wick Terrell | Red Reporter: After winning the offseason last winter, the Reds are emphatically not doing that this year. The Reds traded Raisel Iglesias to the Angels for Noé Ramirez and a player to be named later. Before this move, the Reds had non-tendered Archie Bradley and Brian Goodwin—both acquired in midseason trades this year—and they are reportedly shopping Sonny Gray.

Ben Clemens | FanGraphs: 2019 saw the fastest average fastball velocity on record, but adjusting for time of year, 2020 fell short of that. Fastballs were also used less often than in any other year of the pitch tracking era. Is it possible that we’ve peaked at how hard a league can throw a baseball?